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Demon Princes of Titan
The Demon Princes are the most powerful demons of the Fighting Fantasy universe, who rule over the Demonic Planes and subsequently everything evil in the world of Titan. There are the three superior Snake Demons: Sith, Myurr and Ishtra, and the four Night Demons: Relem, Vradna, Kalin and Shakor who serve as their generals. While they directly appear in very few gamebooks, they influence the actions of many of the series' villains. Most often, the more they are involved in a story the darker it gets. Background Creation of the universe "In the beginning there was Arn and Arn was the beginning." Arn gave birth to the three Primal Deities, Ashra, Vuh and Elim, who shaped the universe. Vuh created the Earthly Planes, Ashra the Astral Planes and Elim the Magical Planes. However, Elim deemed the result flawed and wanted to erase it to start it anew, while Ashra was enthusiastic to push creation further and Vuh felt that things could not be judged until Life was put into motion. Ashra and Vuh gave birth to the Gods of Titan and Elim to the High Lords of Evil and Chaos, the Demon Gods Death, Disease and Decay from the very flaws he wanted to highlight, named after what the mortal races would come to regard as the worst scourges in existence after time was brought to the world. Then the world of Titan came into existence. While the Gods created the different living races, the Demon Gods stole some races from their creators, Orcs, Trolls, Goblins and Lizard-Men among others, and created the demon kind in "a cruel mockery of the creation of the lawful gods". The First Battle As creation flourished, the Demon Gods strived to claim it for themselves, which they did after the God of Neutrality Loogan discovered Time. Death captured Time and threatened to release its ageing power, should the Gods not relinquish the world of Titan to his kind. The Gods refused, leading to the cataclysmic First Battle. In spite of its name, the First Battle was a long war opposing the higher gods of the Celestial Court, their allies of the Animal Court, the Demi-Gods, the Dragon kind and all the lawful mortal races; against the Demon Gods, the lesser Evil Gods, frightful Dark Beings, (such as the Night Dragon, Voivod the Waster, the Black Gargoyle, the Primal Basilisk and the corrupt Spider God Arhallogen) the Demon Kind and the evil mortal races. The forces of Evil tricked several neutral gods (such as the Wolf God Almor and the Goblin God Hashak) to fight by their side, corrupted some warriors of Good and created Undeath and Lycanthropy, but the forces of Good held their own and gave birth to powerful champions. The war ended after Death targetted the God King Titan with a dark bolt made from hatred and fear. The Earth Goddess Throff took the hit, causing considerable anger among the forces of Good which laid waste in the demonic armies. In retaliation, the Fertility Goddess Galana and the Sun Goddess Glantanka hurled a spear of divine energy towards Time, which was held captive by the mightiest demons. Time disintegrated, scattering its essence all over the Earthly Planes and giving birth to the Time God Chronada. Soon after, the forces of Evil were forced to surrender. Fearing the unfathomable evil that would spread if the Demon Gods were executed, the Gods banished them into the Void, along with most of their followers. However, the current Demon Princes and many others escaped. Several of them were later sealed somewhere else, leaving the Demon Princes in charge. The Old Time The Golden Age ended with the war. The Gods had to withdraw from Titan, the living creatures were now mortals and the prosperity of the four major races was lost forever. The Elves retreated to the forests, the Dwarves into the underground caves, the Giants were nearly wiped out and the great cities of Men were reduced to dust. The last two civilizations regressed heavily, most of the giant tribes being stuck into a nearly prehistoric lifestyle. Feeling betrayed by his brothers after the banishment of his kin, Elim sought to expand his cult worldwide and entered a conflict with Ashra and Vuh which caused even more war and chaos between their followers, until the Gods removed the Primal Deities from the memory of livings. Then came the Time of Heroes, during which the mortal races learnt to adapt to the now hostile world of Titan. The Demon Princes sought to gain dominion over it, leading to the sinking of Atlantis the only nation which retained its Golden Age glory. When King Faramos XXII died without known heir the empire suffered great troubles, until a 16-year-old distant relative was discovered and crowned under the name Faramos XXIII. But, this providential heir was in fact the Snake Demon Myurr, who assumed a human form after fabricating evidences of royal descent. Myurr had the once peaceful empire invade every neighbouring kingdom, spreading destruction all over. By the time the Gods realized the king's true identity, they had no other choice than to sink the entire empire under the sea, splitting the original continent of Irritaria into what became the Old World, Allansia and Khul; unfortunately not before Myurr could retreat to the Demonic Planes. After a long period of huge seismic and volcanic activity, the mortal races were once again left to cope with the new settings of the world to rebuild their civilizations for the third and last time. As centuries passed, the mortal races learnt to master Magic, leading to the rise in power of wizards. The Chaos Wars The last great catastrophe to befall on Titan was the discovery of the Dead City, a lost city from long before the splitting in which the high-king of the Brain-Slayers (horrors based on Dungeon&Dragons Illithids) had been imprisoned. After the Brain-Slayers' escape, Evil spread all over Titan, culminating into the Chaos Wars in which the forces of Evil gathered under the command of the Demon Princes to invade the world. In Khul, it resulted in the Great War against Evil and in Allansia in the War of the Wizards. These frightful conflicts scarred both continents permanently, shaping them into separated city states surrounded by hostile wilderness. In the Old World however, a ritual was performed that destroyed the forces of Evil before they could strike. Yet the entire land where it happened became a lawless wasteland where Chaos rules supreme, known as the Khakabad. This led to the New Age, referred to as After Chaos in the Titan timeline. Every gamebook and story set on Titan takes place during the New Age. The Demonic Planes Also known as the Pit '''or '''the Abyss, the Demonic Planes refers to the chaotic Magical Planes where the demon kind settled. It is reminiscent of the Seven Circles of Hell: Primus for the Demon Princes, Secundus for the greater demons, Tertius for the "classical" demons, Quartus for the greater sentient undeads, Quintus for the regular undeads, Sextus for the demonic animals, and Septimus for the brainless demonspawns. The Palace of Agony A repellent fortress of inconceivable architecture, whose mere sight can break a mortal's mind, located at the heart of the Pit. The Palace of Agony is the base of operation of the Demon Princes (from which they observe the world of Titan through a misty pool) and the link between all the Demonic Planes, which also provides access to the other Planes. There, the Demon Princes and their highest-ranked servants gather for unspeakably awful feasts, the demonic animals are breed, and the essence of the defeated demons returns to regenerate. The Plane of Steel The Plane ruled by the Snake Demon Sith; from her eldritch palace made of snake scales. It is there where the demons' weapons are forged, bewitched and made unique for their wielders. The Plane of Rust The Plane ruled by the Snake Demon Myurr; mostly populated by demons of withering and decay. The Plane of Ichor The Plane ruled by the Snake Demon Ishtra; named after the mystical substance that flows through every supernatural being and which quantity determinates their amount of power. The Plane of Blood The Plane ruled by the Night Demon Relem; made of a revolting combination of blood and vital fluids, which can be given a solid shape to create buildings such as Relem's horrendous palace. The Plane of Platinum The Plane ruled by the Night Demon Vradna; which lacks the foulness, destruction and decay of the other Demonic Planes yet is favoured by many elemental demons. The Plane of Obsidian A particularly unstable Plane plagued by earthquakes, volcanoes and other natural disasters; ruled by the Night Demon Kalin. The Plane of Bile The abhorrent Plane ruled by;the Night Demon Shakor; mostly populated by plague-bringing demons. About the Demon Princes The Demon Princes were once part of a much larger demonic legion, (about 27 Snake Demons and 81 Night Demons) but the others were banished to the Void. There were also other demons of equal rank such as the Kurakil, the Shadow King and Quezkari. The Demon Princes served as the Demon Gods' generals during the First Battle, but now they rule the Pit and want to create a portal between the planes from which the demons could flood in; in order to terraform Titan into a dark wasteland where demons would rule supreme. The Demon Princes are manifestations of Evil that can assume any form they want. They are bound to the Pit but can manifest themselves in any other Plane. They cannot be killed and very few weapons can harm them. Should their earthly incarnation get destroyed by a hero, they would return to the Pit to slowly regenerate until they could start a new plan of action, though divine influence would usually prevent them from seeking revenge. Being of Demi-Gods status, they are worshipped by the evil races and corrupt people all over Titan. Most, if not all of the series' individual villains serve their purpose, even with goals of conquest of their own. Sometimes, said villains are influenced by lesser demons working for the Princes: Zanbar Bone's parents led a cult dedicated to Myurr, leading the Snake Demon to claim the infant's soul and grant him immense Dark Powers, creating one of the greatest blights to ever plague Allansia. Worshipping the Demon Princes turned Belgaroth into the most fearsome Chaos Lord ever seen on the Old World since Voivod himself. It was an Ice Demon who made the innocent Shareella the dreaded Snow Witch. Oldoran Zagor and Zharradan Marr (and according to some sources Balthus Dire as well) are rumoured to be half-demons. The Archmage of Mampang transforms into a Netherworld Demon during the final confrontation of The Crown of Kings, implying a pact or a possession. The Shadow Demon Agglax, the villain of the gamebook Armies of Death, is a servant of the Demon Princes seeking to conquer the world on their behalf. Finally Ikiru, the villain of the gamebook Sword of the Samurai, is a demon seeking to unleash chaos on the continent of Khul. The Snake Demons The three highest ranking Demon Princes. Their title stems less from their reptilian features than from Sith's fondness for snakes. They are highly cruel and unforgiving towards their servants and much worse towards the mortal races. Although they work towards the same goals, they are in constant competition and always seek to gain dominion over the others. Sith The only female Demon Prince, should gender ever apply to such beings, she was referred to as the Goddess of Evil Sithera in the pantheon of the ancient, Egypt-like country of Djarat, before the splitting of Irritaria. She usually appears as a giant four-armed woman with the head of a cobra, wearing black gowns and jewelry made of skulls. Sith must not be confused with Vermistra, the neutral Snake Goddess, although one of Vermistra's children, the Immortal Python Sussussurr, has become her familiar. Sith is described as the cruelest Demon Prince. She is the most influent of the three Snake Demons in the Pit, for she commands the Night Demons Relem and Vradna, but her influence on the Earthly Plane is less expanded. She created the Caarth race and other snake-humanoids by blending snakes and humans together. One can also assume that she is linked to Venom-Demons. Sith is most active in the continent of Allansia, especially in the dangerous Desert of Skulls, where dwell her snake-men servants. She rarely leaves the Pit and never involves herself directly, preferring to act through her followers and to use her powers from afar. Contrary to the other two Snake Demons, Sith does not appear in person in gamebooks, though she makes her influence felt in those whose antagonists work for her. Myurr The most intelligent of the Demon Princes, Myurr is equally active in both Planes having a palace in both worlds. Most of his actions take place in the continent of the Old World. He most often appears as an enormous four-armed demon with the head of a snake and large leathery wings. He also appears as a gigantic toad, or as an innocent-looking teenager (to better fool his victims). Myurr is feared for his diabolical schemes and traps. He is constantly plotting to gain power in Titan, and mostly acts by infiltrating and manipulating governments under a human aspect to spread discord and chaos; (when he does not directly set himself on the throne). He also frequently uses his human aspects to tempt or manipulate people, and builds awful artifacts that wither the land. He can amplify the malevolence in people's hearts by looking them in the eye. Myurr is worshipped by the Dark Elves, which makes him the indirect lord of the Dark Elven city of Tìranduil Kelthas. All Dark Elven rulers, such as the Dark Elf Sorcerer, the villain the gamebook Siege of Sardath, are his direct servants. Also, Malbordus, the villain of the gamebook Temple of Terror, was raised within the walls of Tìranduil Kelthas by a Priestess of Myurr. Ishtra The most warmongering of the Demon Princes, Ishtra most often appears as a towering bipedal crocodile with the head of a goat, entirely covered in green fire. He can also appear as a giant, two-headed lizard-man wielding a flaming sword, or as a huge, intense energy ball. He strives to gain control over the forces of nature and most forms of magic. Ishtra uses green fire as his primary weapon and influences the Dream Realm, in which he commands the entity known as Morpheus, source of all nightmares. Ishtra stole the Lizard Men race from the Lizard God Suthis Sha during the First Battle. As such, he can be regarded as the indirect ruler of the Lizard Man Empire, which is in turn the primary threat of the gamebook Battleblade Warrior. Ishtra is most active on the Earthly Planes, and especially in the continent of Khul. It was he who resurrected the wizard Shanzikuul, the villain of the gamebook Master of Chaos who served under him during the Chaos Wars, and who orchestrated the return of the archmage Xakhaz, the villain of the book Beneath Nightmare Castle. The witch Morganna, villainess of the gamebook Masks of Mayhem, and the warlock Jartaxes, villain of the gamebook Fangs of Fury, were also stated to be his servants. The Night Demons The second tier of the Demon Princes. They are depicted as four-meter-tall muscular humanoids of reddish body colour, with two black, draconic heads and large leathery wings. (This being the aspect under which Relem appears. Whether they all look like this is unclear.) They serve as the tacticians of the demonic hordes and spend most of their time watching over Titan to plan their course of action. Relem One of Sith's lieutenants and the only Night Demon featured in a gamebook. He uses lightning as his primary weapon and masters rituals of Blood Magic. Vradna The other lieutenant of Sith, he has as such a neverending rivalry with Relem. He became the master of the gargoyles following the Black Gargoyle's demise during the First Battle. Kalin Kalin is the only Night Demon with no known master, though it is implied that he serves Myurr. There is little to nothing else known about him. Shakor Ishtra's lieutenant. Like Kalin, he is not mentioned often and largely unknown. The Kurakil Although not exactly a Demon Prince, the Kurakil, also called Miphreas the Soul Destroyer and the Infernal Beast, was stated to be of the same rank and influence. He and two equally powerful demons called Rivel and Akragog were instructed by Death to keep Time hostage during the First Battle. He seems to be the only one who has escaped banishment in the Void, but he got trapped inside the bewitched Casket of Shadows in the aftermath of the Chaos Wars. He appears as a five-meter-tall scaly demon with large leathery wings, a horned wolf-like head, a dragon-like tail and the legs of a goat. Gamebooks featuring a Demon Prince Curse of the Mummy The playable character is recruited by the archaeologist Jerran Farr to prevent the Cult of the Cobra, worshippers of Sithera (Sith), from reaching the recently discovered tomb of the evil pharaoh Akharis. Akharis was Sithera's most fanatical worshipper, and if the Cult succeeds in resurrecting his mummy, his curse would turn Allansia into a plague-ridden, darkness-covered desert filled with snakes and scorpions. Despite never appearing in person, Sith is the de facto main villain of the gamebook; as she directly influences the Cult of the Cobra. Akharis himself only serves as the final enemy. The gamebook figures a score of Poison that must not reach 18, otherwise it kills you. The story begins in the Desert of Skulls in the search for the tomb, but Jerran Farr does not survive for long, leaving you alone. You must seek the help of the shaman Lopar, before entering Akharis' tomb at last. The tomb is full of dangerous traps and monsters, including Sith’s Caarth servants. The ghost of Rhehothep, the tomb's architect, can provide valuable information, but Akharis' loyal Vizier Amentut was buried in the tomb and protects his liege’s treasure. *Amentut's mummy poses little threat. He has only 7 in skill (power level) and 7 in stamina (life-points), but should he strike you he might age you at contact and weaken you while draining your stamina. If you can answer the riddle of a Sphinx, you learn that the cultists brought the mummy to the Temple of Sithera. Before heading towards the temple, you can visit the necropolis and meet the ghost of Princess Nemset, to win useful artifacts if you win her challenge. In the temple, you get captured by the cult so that your life-force could revive Akharis. You must free yourself and directly confront the High Priestess of the Cult of the Cobra. Unfortunately, when the High Priestess is killed, Sith intervenes and revives Akharis herself. *The High Priestess is protected by mummies that can be destroyed with charms and fire, and must be dealt with before they overwhelm you. Wearing a Malachite Amulet compels you to obey her and leads to a game over. You need a Falcon Breastplate to destroy the demonic spirit she summons or get killed, and an Eye Amulet to resist her strength-draining gaze. *The High Priestess is a dangerous enemy with 9 in skill and 7 in stamina, who attacks with her animated cobra-staff. Each blow she deals adds 1 point to your poison score in addition to the wounds inflicted. The Final Battle Akharis is a very powerful and dangerous enemy with 13 in skill (1 point over the normal maximum) and 25 in stamina, who fights bare-handed. Setting him on fire or casting a spell is useless and leads to a painful counterattack. Also, using the Iron Wand (a cursed sceptre) grants him 1 skill point and 3 stamina points. However, smashing the jars containing Akharis’ organs costs him 1 stamina points each and 1 skill point for each pair, and dousing him with the Waters of Life costs him a dice roll worth of stamina. You can destroy his sarcophagus after winning an attack round, costing him 6 stamina points. You can also try to remove his Death Mask, costing him 1 skill point and 2 stamina points, but such attempts prove risky. You must choose your actions carefully to deal as much damage as possible. With Akharis defeated, Sith animates the statue in her likeness and crushes you to death if you lack an Ankh. She then reanimates Akharis again, this time with 8 in skill and 10 in stamina. If the battle lasts longer than five attack rounds, you will die in the collapse of the temple. When Akharis' stamina drops to 4, you will throw him into the magical fires and destroy him for good. You must finally use a crystal ball to contact the Shaman Lopar and be teleported to safety to win the game. Dead of Night Dead of Night is a horror-themed gamebook, providing the playable character with a background and a family. After a demon killed your brother, you became a powerful Holy Knight known in the country of Gallantaria in the Old World as the Demon-Stalker. You had thwarted several of Myurr's schemes and even once exposed Myurr himself, who was impersonating a king's advisor, earning the Demon Prince’s staunch hatred. The story begins when Myurr appears in your dream and reveals that he abducted your parents, prompting you to start a quest. You can choose three Special Skills between Heal, Banish Undead, Meditation, Sense Demon, Speak Demon, Holy Circle and (the evil-based) Dark Veil. There is also a score of Evil which measures your bad deeds and must be kept as low as possible. While visiting your hometown, you discover that Myurr sent two Blight Demons shape-shifted as your parents to fake their death and cover up their abduction. The demons plague the village from the grave and must be destroyed. (Their actions cause the villagers to resent you for triggering the demons' wrath.) Slaying them leaves a "clue" made to lead you to a dangerous trap. You can also visit your friend Sharleena the seer to gain information, but she will killed by a demon. (Her ghost might visit you later to give you warning, even if you did not see her.) You later realize that Myurr's demonic forces are plaguing Gallantaria and you must protect many peasants, such as when an entire town is invaded by gargoyle-like Moon Demons, when undead warriors are attacking a farm, or when a powerful Great Demon with 11 in skill and 18 in stamina attacks you. You must track down Myurr's right-hand man, the necromancer Magrand, who hides in a mill guarded by undeads and abducts people on a daily basis for his experiments. *In spite of his great magical power, Magrand is physically frail and has only 6 in skill and 6 in stamina. He might cast a bothersome spell if you do not take him by surprise, but all in all he poses little to no threat. You might run into a dark ritual in which a Moon Demon Mage tries to resurrect Magrand as an undead Abomination. If you cannot prevent Magrand's return you must fight him. *Magrand-the-Abomination first has 6 in skill and 13 in stamina but after two attack rounds his skill increases to 10 and his stamina is restored, making him a powerful and dangerous enemy. All the more so given that he can kill you outright should he gather enough attack strength! You might also enter a Land-Blight (a demonic, organic building which withers and corrupts the land) to free the people captive inside and destroy the Dark Stone that serves as its core with a very dangerous spell. Finally, you must destroy a Baleful Eye: a demonic eye atop a tower whose stare can damn people's souls, quite reminiscent of Sauron of Mordor. You shall then meet one of the Netherworld Sorcerers, the Guardians of Neutrality that Myurr manipulated into siding with him, by making them believe that Good got so much influence that it threatens the balance. If you manage to reveal the truth, the Sorcerer will grant you the Demon-Slayer sword, the only blade able to harm a Demon Prince, and teleport you to Myurr's tower in the Cragrock Peaks. Right before entering the tower, you must wipe off the inscription; otherwise a spell deprives you of all your weapons able to harm Myurr. The tower itself is full of annoying mazes and deadly traps, thus reaching the throne room where the Demon Prince is holding your parents captive is quite tricky. Facing Myurr The gloating Demon Prince reveals that he set everything to lure you right where he wanted. Indeed he needs to combine your soul, your parents' life-force and the Netherworld Sorcerers' magic to open a gate between the Physical Plane and the Pit and take over both. Using the Dark Veil skill in this battle only leads to a game over, since using an evil-based spell against a Demon Prince corrupts you and makes you Myurr's slave. Myurr is a formidable foe with 14 in skill and 25 in stamina, who uses his four clawed arms to strike twice in a row, as if you were fighting two equally powerful enemies. You can choose between three tactics when winning an attack round. *'Regular Battle': You need the Demon-Slayer sword to win this fight. Striking Myurr with any other sword is useless and the power-up it grants is the only way to match the Demon Prince. *'Holy Water': Should you win a skill test, Myurr would lose the result of a dice-roll in stamina. Yet, this only makes the battle easier, since there is not enough holy water to take Myurr down. *'Search for the Jewel': The safest way to defeat Myurr is to destroy the magic jewel through which he manifests on the Physical Plane, hidden among the relics guarded by the corrupted Netherworld Sorcerers. Destroying the wrong item only makes Myurr strike harder or kick you against a wall, costing 2 to 5 stamina points. You must target the pyramid of bones, and win a test of Evil to resist Myurr's corrupting gaze when he attempts to stop you. If you lose, you become Myurr's slave and the game is lost; otherwise the jewel gets destroyed, defeating the Demon Prince. However, without the Demon-Slayer sword or a holy ring, you will lose a great deal of stamina and you might die in the resulting blast. Phantoms of Fear You play as a young Elf shaman known as the Eldenurin (Defender Shaman). As Ishtra is gathering every evil creature in the continent of Khul under his command to stat a second Chaos War, you are tasked by the Fertility Goddess Galana to rise against the Demon Prince. You have a Power score, which allows you to cast spells and to venture into the Dream Realm. You can cast spells of Invisibility, Illusion, Levitation, Weakening, Detection and Fire but you must use theses abilities with extreme parcimony, as you need to raise the highest possible total of Power to stand a chance against Ishtra. You discover that both the Physical Plane and the Dream Realm are blighted by Ishtra's demonic influence and have begun to wither, as the Demon Prince is using the Dream Realm as an asset in his goals of conquest. You will often have to travel to the Dream Realm, where the monsters encountered are fought in a way that involves dice rolls and random, and can easily turn to your disadvantage. There are also several dangerous monsters born from Ishtra's experiments. You must search everywhere for magical relics needed to defeat Ishtra and to gather information about how to use them. As you venture into Ishtra's blighted hideout, you can no longer cast spells due to the Demon Prince's influence. When venturing in the innermost sanctum, you will enter a nightmare in which you will have to face Ishtra's right-hand, Morpheus the Lord of Nightmares: a disgusting amalgamation of monsters' bodies. *Morpheus first sends three dream monsters with high Power scores after you. Contrary to the other dream-monsters, Morpheus can kill you for real and the fight is lead like a normal one, except that both opponents use their Power score instead of their stamina. Morpheus has 8 in skill and 20 in power, which does not make him much of a threat, but you must by no mean finish him off, otherwise you would end the dream you are in and end up dead. Facing Ishtra You will have to battle Ishtra immediately after defeating Morpheus, and you have the choice of battling in the Dream Realm or in the Physical Plane. Should you wear a green pendant, Ishtra will be able to devour your soul and turn you into his undead servant without resistance. *'Battle in the Dream Realm': Ishtra is fought the same way as Morpheus, with 10 in skill and 21 in power. While powerful, Ishtra has a surprisingly low skill total for a demon of his rank but he compensates with his vast Power score, which you must surpass. Should you have less than 22 points of Power, you would be forced to retreat to the Physical Plane. *'Battle in the Physical Plane:' Ishtra can only be defeated with six relics filled with the power of nature: a deer's antler and a crystal ball representing wind, an amber and a branch representing fire, and an icicle and a bowl representing water. Should you lack one relic, place them in the wrong combination, or lack enough Power to perform the ritual, Ishtra incinerates you with his green fire. But if every condition is met, the relics will generate a powerful force field and destroy the Demon Prince's earthly avatar. Tower of Destruction The story begins when the playable character returns to their hometown in the cold northern regions of Allansia, only to witness a gigantic, flying Sphere of Destruction burning it to the ground. So begins a quest to track down the Sphere and those behind it. The game features an Honour score which must be raised to the highest possible number and a rule of Time Elapsed, to note how many days are spent in the track. You first have to investigate on the Sphere through talking to locals and barbarian natives, to learn that it is controlled by a Dark Wizard. You eventually manage to enter the Sphere and to confront both the wizard (in fact a weaker projection) and Dazrakk, his man-orc bodyguard. * Dazrakk is a powerful enemy with 10 in skill and 10 in stamina. After 3 attack rounds, the wizard starts firing magic arrows at you that deal additional damage at every attack round. The wizard is fought after Dazrakk, having 8 in skill and 8 in stamina. *It is safer to target the jewel that projects the wizard's double to dispel it, leaving only Dazrakk as a threat. With your enemies gone, you destroy the Sphere from the inside. When escaping the blast, you shall rescue Aliades, a former apprentice of the wizard who tried to stop him and was held captive. Aliades tells you that the Sphere was only a first try and that the wizard, Zeverin, is about to create a far more lethal Tower of Destruction. The real villain of the story is revealed to be the Night Demon Relem, who struck a deal with Zeverin and granted him most of his power. Relem wants to use the destruction that the tower would bring to open a gate between the Pit and the Physical Planes, and it is made clear that he will dispose of Zeverin when he no longer needs him. You later travel through the Icefinger Mountains towards the Ice Palace of the Elf Mages, where Zeverin used to learn magic. The Ice Palace is now a mausoleum for the Elf Mages who dwell there as ghosts, many of them needing to be freed from Zeverin's curse. You must fight Zeverin’s Dark Elves and search for many useful items, including an Ice Bird and an Ice Sword, and meet the ghost of two Elf Mages: Tassakil, who can reactivate and increase the Ice Sword's power, and the Archmage Elokinan, whose magical chalice can power you up depending on your honour total. Then, you must find a way to enter the Tower of Destruction itself and fight your way to its core. Facing Zeverin You can use several items to attack your foe before battling him. Using a Wand of Cold and bewitched arrows can kill Zeverin without fight, which is advised considering the upcoming battle against Relem. But if Zeverin gains the advantage or is struck with normal arrows, his spells cost you 3 stamina points (and sometimes 1 skill point). Zeverin is a powerful enemy and a surprisingly talented swordsman with 10 in skill and 13 in stamina, and he almost always cast spells costing 5 in stamina before fighting. Facing Relem The Demon Prince is fought right after Zeverin. He first blasts you with lightning and several items are necessary to avoid huge damages: an activated Ice Sword (to avoid losing 4 stamina points), an Ice Shield (or minus 4 points), and a Magic Ring (minus 1 dice roll worth of stamina instead of 2). Then, an Ice Bird can be used to distract Relem, allowing you to heal. Relem is a highly powerful and dangerous foe with 14 in skill and 25 in stamina, whose claws cost 3 stamina points instead of the regular 2. The Ice Sword is mandatory to stand a chance against him. If it was enchanted to fight demons, the battle will be easier. After defeating Relem, you must make a perilous escape from the collapsing tower, in which you might die several times if you run out of luck. Then you find yourself attacked by Zeverin of all people! (Likely using another double or being revived by Relem as a vengeance.) If you own the Ice Sword, Elokinan will appear and get rid of the wizard once and for all; otherwise everything ends in a giant energy ball. SpellBreaker The story begins when the playable character is tricked into letting the warlock Nazek enter a monastery in which no evil can enter uninvited. Nazek steals the fabled Black Grimoire and you have four days to track him down before the night of Shekka's Moon, the night when the evil Goddess of Sorcery Shekka expands her power over the world, during which the Grimoire could be used in a ritual to free the Kurakil from the Casket of Shadows. The gamebook in itself is very hard, full of dangerous battles, complicated riddles and a lot of mandatory items. It features a score of Faith which must be raised to the highest possible number, to guard you against evil, and a score of Infection which must be kept very low, to measure your vulnerability to plague when exposed. In the beginning of your quest, you must save the town of Aryll from plague-bringing rats and slay the monster responsible of the plague to get cured as well. *The plague-bringing Canker has only 8 in skill and 12 in stamina, and can be weakened with fire, but you must destroy it before its plague-zombie guards can interrupt the fight. Then, you will have to travel through several places blighted by evil, and visit the vaults of two ancient heroes, including Enthus the Martyr, the one who trapped the Kurakil whom you need to meet through the Veil, after destroying the evil spirit who possesses his remains. You will also have to confront a Dread Demon, and to save an innocent girl from being burned at the stake by an Inquisitor possessed by a demon. A demon whom you will have to banish. The Kurakil cannot be defeated without the Holy Sword Deliverer, which was stolen by "The Mask", the lord of the local thieves who must be tracked down. *"The Mask" is a very powerful enemy with 11 in skill and 12 in stamina, who fortunately lacks special skills that could have complicated the fight. Finally, you must capture Mistress Crowfoot, a witch at Nazek's command, by unveiling her disguise and slaying her crow with a hawk; and enlist the help of the secret society which opposes Nazek, to storm the ruins of the monastery where the warlock and his coven are performing the ritual to open the Casket of Shadows. All this before it is too late. The Final Battle You must engage the battle immediately and fight your way towards Nazek, who has just unleashed the Infernal Beast. You must then close the Casket of Shadows with a spell taken from a page of the Black Grimoire; otherwise the other demons trapped inside will escape and seal your doom. Using an item against the Kurakil is useless and might render you vulnerable to Nazek's deadly aging curse. The Kurakil is a very powerful and dangerous enemy with 12 in skill and 18 in stamina. He fights with his claws and swipes his tail every attack round, causing additional damage 2 in 6 times, no matter the outcome. You need a Venom's Bane potion to survive against the spiders summoned by Nazek. While nowhere as dangerous as the Kurakil, the warlock has 10 in skill and 9 in stamina, which is no laughing matter, and he takes advantage from your weakened state after the previous battle. When his stamina drops under 2, you must win a difficult test of faith to finish him off, or get fully corrupted by the evil power spread by the night of Shekka’s Moon. 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